Syria Ready to Help Lebanon Fight Militants: Syrian Envoy

Local Editor

Syrian Ambassador Ali Abdul-Karim Ali said his country is willing to help Lebanon in its fight against militants, in remarks published on Thursday.

"Lebanon cannot deal with terrorism alone," Ali told the local daily Al-Akhbar, in reference to the deadly gunbattles between the the Lebanese army and militants affiliated with the so-called "Isalmic State of Iraq and the Levant" [ISIL] and the so-called "al-Nusra Front" in the Bekaa Valley border town of Arsal earlier this month [August].

Ali said that even prior to the Arsal gunbattles earlier this month, he had conveyed the Syrian government’s willingness to support Lebanon at the military and security levels.

He stressed that in the wake of the growing threats from militants, the "Lebanese and Syrian governments must hold a direct meeting to create a road map [to confront] the common crises."

"We will respond if the Lebanese Army asked us for help on the outskirts of Arsal," Ali promised.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team